


i can’t see me lovin’ nobody but you

by pandani



Category: The Prom - Sklar/Beguelin/Martin
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alyssa has a gay panic, Cheating, F/F, Happy Ending, Imagine Me & You AU, Light Angst, Slow(ish) Burn, big creds to the discord for encouraging me to write my first fic in years, light homophobia, listen if you know what imagine me & you is it's basically that
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2019-07-19
Packaged: 2020-05-18 20:20:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19341910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pandani/pseuds/pandani
Summary: Today was supposed to be the perfect day. After months of planning, Alyssa was finally getting married to one of her best friends, and they were going to live happily ever after.And then she locked eyes with the florist as she was walking down the aisle, and everything changed.oran imagine me & you au





	1. your eyes whispered "have we met?"

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys! i guess we're doing this. my summer is gonna be just a bit busy between work, vacation, and running off to nyc for a few days to see the show before it closes, so i can't guarantee a consistent update schedule, but i'll try my best!  
> also, seriously, massive shoutout to the prom discord for being my muses on the daily. love y'all. this one's for you.
> 
> chapter title from the song "enchanted" by taylor swift.

By the time her alarm goes off, Alyssa Greene had already been sitting in bed wide awake for an hour.

She had woken up in a cold sweat at around 6:30 in the morning, and the butterflies in her stomach prevented her from going back to bed. Her usual morning routine passed in a blur of memorized movements- brush your teeth, wash your face- and her reverie was only disrupted by a frantic banging at the door.

Alyssa took a deep breath, and then another. _I guess we’re doing this._

“Coming!”

She opened the door to find Kaylee and Shelby, practically vibrating with excitement as they launched themselves at Alyssa, engulfing her in a too-tight hug, high-pitched voices squealing unintelligibly into her ear. Extracting herself from their grasp, Alyssa laughed despite the nervousness coiling in her stomach.

“Girls,” she choked out between laughs, “I gotta breathe. Don’t wanna kill me before the actual wedding, right?”

Kaylee was the first to speak up. “It’s just so exciting, Alyssa! It’s finally happening! I can’t believe it’s finally happening!”

“And to Greg!” Shelby sighs. “He’s just so damn precious.”

“I guess so,” Alyssa says, laughing nervously as she shrugs.

As both the girls open their mouth to protest, the door all but slammed open as Alyssa’s parents burst into the room, arms full of hangers, effectively cutting off whatever questions the two had about Alyssa’s rather blasé response.

“Alright, girls! Let’s get going!” Mrs. Greene’s voice cut through the air, shoving the bridesmaids dresses into Kaylee and Shelby’s arms before turning to her daughter and dropping her voice. “You ready, superstar?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Alyssa says, taking the dress from her mother.

The next hours passed in a flurry of activity. Alyssa barely registered any of it, smiling, nodding, and humming in response to any questions thrown her way as hands- who knows whose- work on her pulling her hair up and carefully applying makeup to her face. Before she knew it, Kaylee and Shelby were helping her pull on her dress. Alyssa vaguely hears the muffled voices of her parents outside the bathroom arguing about something or other.

“All set!” Shelby’s voice in her ear makes Alyssa jump slightly as the world came back into focus. God, what was up with her today? Did everyone feel this… what was it? Apprehension? Uncertainty? Fear? Before their wedding? Alyssa felt like she was going to throw up. That’s normal, right? “You look stunning, girl.”

“Right?” Kaylee exclaimed on her other side. She lowered her voice conspiratorially. “Greg won’t be able to keep eyes,” she winked and bumped Alyssa’s hip with hers, causing her to lightly tumble into Shelby, who catches her, laughing, “... or hands off of you.”

Alyssa tries to convince herself that the feeling in her stomach is excitement.

She thinks she can hear her mother complaining about her father’s suit- _please fix your jacket, I’ve seen better dressed monkeys_ \- before Shelby piped up. “She’s coming on out!”

The room fell into silence as Alyssa stepped out, hair pulled into an immaculate updo, her white gown flowing to the floor, the lacey bodice hugging her figure.

“What do you think?”

“Oh, honey. You’re beautiful,” Mrs. Greene whispered, wiping away tears that threatened to spill from her eyes.

Mr. Greene stepped forward and placed a hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “You really do look great, kiddo.”

Alyssa let out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding, wringing her hands together to hide the shaking. “Let’s do this.”

Immediately, Alyssa found herself being pulled by Shelby, out of the door and towards the car.

 

* * *

 

Emma Nolan’s day started out just about the same as any of her other days do. Wake up at the crack of dawn, make and eat breakfast with her grandmother, Betsy, get dressed, and arrive nice and early to open up the flower shop.

She went through the motions of her day almost like she was on autopilot. An apology bouquet here, a nervous young man preparing for his first date there. Emma loved her job. She loved seeing all the different types of people who found themselves searching for the right flower to encompass exactly what they wanted to say when words couldn’t suffice.

Well, she loved seeing most of the different types of people.

_“I want something that says ‘I’m sorry he’s dead, but not that sorry. He was just a dog and you shouldn’t have loved him more than me. Can you do me a bunch that says that?”_

Sometimes, straight people just really confused Emma.

After a relatively normal few hours, Emma began to load her pickup for the biggest job she’d had in a while: a wedding. The lady, who seemed to be the mother of the bride, was a bit of a bitch if Emma was being completely honest, but she was paying well, so despite the oddly specific requests made by the woman, Emma gladly took the job.

As she was loading her truck, a familiar face sauntered around the corner. Emma rolled her eyes.  
  
“You’re late, Alice.”

The woman laughed, ruffling Emma’s hair as she moved to stand beside her. “Sure am. What’s the job?”

“Wedding,” Emma swatted Alice’s hand away from her. “Just need to grab the last few from the storage room and then we should be all good to go.”

Alice jogged into the store and walked out a few moments later, arms full of flowers. “So, a wedding. That’s exciting. Are they a nice couple?” One of the arrangements began to slip out of Alice’s grip, Emma managing to catch it before it hit the ground.

“You really need to stop doing that. And I don’t know, I only talked to the mother of the bride. I have no clue what the couple is like, but if the bride is anything like her mother, I apologize in advance to the poor soul she’s marrying.”

“It’s always the mother, isn’t it.” Alice loaded the last of the flowers into the truck. “Hey, a few of us girls were thinking of going out tonight. Wanna tag along? Celebrate the big job?”

Emma scoffed. “Alice, I’m not the _going out_ type and you know it.”

“C’mon, just this once?” Alice pouted.

“Nope.”

“Not even for a little bit?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Who knows, maybe _you_ could meet a special someone? Love’ll be in the air after the wedding. You need a love life, Em!”

Sighing, Emma walked over to the other side of the truck and opened the passenger door. “No, I do not. Now get in the truck.”

“Fine,” Alice said, sitting down and buckling her seatbelt. Once Emma was settled in the driver’s seat, Alice turned to her once more. “I’m not joking about the love life thing, though. It’s not fair that you get to make fun of my love life and I don’t have anything to make fun of.”

“Hey, it’s not my fault you’re shit at finding good people.” Emma flashed a good-natured smile at her friend before turning the key.

“I resent that.”

 

* * *

 

A few hours later, all the flowers had been placed for the ceremony, and Emma found herself mingling with some of the wedding guests. Alice had already left, catching a cab into the city for a lunch date or something, leaving Emma to awkwardly work her way through a growing crowd of strangers before approaching the man who seemed to be the groom. She tapped him on the shoulder, and both he and the man next to him turned to face her.

“Hi. Um, you’re Greg, right? The groom?”

“Yeah! Yeah, I am. And you are?”

Well, he seemed nice enough, especially next to his friend, who Emma saw looking her up and down out of the corner of her eye. Gross. Emma reached out her hand.

“I’m Emma. Uh, Nolan. Emma Nolan. I did your flowers.”

Greg smiled. “Oh, did you? Well, they’re wonderful, aren’t they, Nick?”

The brown-haired man next to Greg finally spoke, eyes still glued to Emma. “Wonderful, yeah. Though, honestly, I don’t know shit about flowers, so-”

“But they’re wonderful. Right, Nick?”

“Sure,” Nick smirked.

Emma suppressed a groan. This was going to be a long day. “Anyway, I have your boutonnières right here,” She reached into a bag and pulled out the roses, handing them to the two men as a couple other groomsmen jogged up to join them. As she’s about to walk over and hand the rest of the boutonnières out, Nick turns to her.

“Actually, can i get some help putting this on?”

No. “Sure thing.” Emma took the boutonnière and reluctantly began to pin it to his lapel, trying to focus entirely on the task at hand and not at Nick’s seemingly perpetual smirk.

“I work out, you know.” _Oh God, here we go._ Emma doesn’t reply, but that didn’t seem to deter him at all. “Don’t have a six-pack, though. Nope, twelve-pack on this bad boy.”

“I don’t really like men with muscles.” Emma replied flatly. _Don’t really like men at all, actually._

“Thing is, I’m also very sensitive, too.”

“I’m sure you are.”

“Hey, Nick!” Nick turned towards the voice, allowing Emma to slip away and hand the rest of the boutonnières out. “Anthony has this question and none of us seem to be able to answer it.”

“Hit me with it, Kev.”

The other man- Kevin, Emma notes- looked over his shoulder before turning back to Nick. “What happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object?”

Nick looked up at Greg, who simply stared back and shrugged. “Got no clue, bro, sorry.”

“Dammit.”

“It never happens.” All eyes turned towards Emma as she spoke up. “If there’s a thing that can’t be stopped, then it’s impossible for there to be a thing that can’t be moved, and vice versa. It’s a, uh, trick question. They can’t both exist.”

Silence descended upon the group for a moment. “Huh,” Kevin said finally. “Alright. Cool. And you are?”

Emma decided then that she doesn’t get paid enough for this.

 

* * *

 

“Dad, how did you feel right before you got married?”

Alyssa bounced nervously by the entrance to the church. The strange mix of feelings that had been brewing inside of her earlier today hadn’t subsided at all. If anything, it was even worse now.

Her father seemed to be barely present, staring into the church. “Hm. I remember all the way to the church I just wanted to shout “Stop the car! This is a horrible mistake.” But you can’t, can you?”

That wasn’t exactly the response Alyssa wanted to hear.

“So you just sit there. Say nothing. As the wheels keep turning, leading you on to the longest sentence-”

“Uh, dad?”

“Yes?” For the first time in several moments, it seemed that he remembered where he was. “Oh, right. Sorry, darling. I don’t mean to imply that that’s how you should be feeling. Greg’s a great guy, I’m excited for you.” From inside the church, Alyssa could hear the wedding march begin to play. Her father held out his arm. “Shall we?”

Alyssa gripped tight to her father's arm, willing her heart to stop pounding as she took her first slow steps down the aisle. She tried to keep her head held high, but her eyes flit from person to person, unable to focus on the man waiting for her at the end of the aisle. Her eyes continued to wander, to her friends from high school, to her aunts and uncles and cousins, until they landed on an unfamiliar face looking back at her.

Call it cliche, but in that moment, it felt as if Alyssa's world had frozen, and it was just her and the stranger with beautiful blonde curls and hazel eyes. Alyssa’s breath caught in her throat, and her already racing heart began to pound even harder. She closed her eyes and shook her head to break herself out of the trance that she found herself in, and when she glanced back, the stranger was gone.

If Alyssa felt a strange sense of disappointment as she forced her gaze back forward, towards her soon-to-be-husband at the altar, well, no one had to know that.

“You alright?”

“Hm?” Alyssa turned to face Greg, the casual smile on his face offset by the slightly concerned look in his eyes. “Oh. Yeah. I’m great.”

“Hm.” The look lingered before his face relaxed once more. “You look beautiful.”

Alyssa smiled back at him, trying to ignore how the swoop in her stomach felt less like excitement and more like dread.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today…”


	2. i remember how i met you (the serendipities and details)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alyssa finally meets the stunning stranger she locked eyes with while walking down the aisle, and it's even more strange and exhilarating and wonderful than she ever could have imagined.  
> Not that she'd ever admit that, even to herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and here's chapter 2! longer than the first one, but hey, they actually talk here!  
> also, the positive response to chapter 1 has been so nice y'all omg. i appreciate and love all of you so big.
> 
> chapter title from the song "fire under water" by girl blue.

Emma took a deep breath as she arrived at the reception location, trying in vain to refocus her mind on the task at hand rather than what had just transpired.

After checking in with the mother, Emma had begun to walk out of the church right as the wedding march started to play, having to leave with enough time to set up the flowers for the reception. On her way out, she had turned, hoping to get a glimpse of the bride, only to find that the bride had turned her gaze her way at the exact same time.

Their eyes met, and Emma Nolan knew from that moment on that she was completely and utterly screwed.

For those couple seconds in which they looked into each other’s eyes, the world seemed to fall into slow motion, and all Emma knew was this woman with the most beautiful warm brown eyes she had ever seen.

This woman that was about to get married.

_ Well, shit. _

Emma afforded herself one last look backwards at the woman, who was now standing at the altar, before exiting the church and driving over to the reception location, and now, well. Now she was here, with a job to do, and her mind fixed firmly on a married woman.

Shaking her head, she put herself to work and meticulously placed every arrangement for the reception. She was getting paid for this, after all, and the mother, Mrs. Greene, Emma vaguely remembers, doesn’t seem like the type of woman she wants to upset.

Emma’s thoughts were interrupted by her phone going off in her pocket just as she was placing the finishing touches on the reception. After a cursory glance at the screen, she answered it.

“Hey, Alice.”

“Hiya Em! Just wanted to check in before my night got too crazy. How are things going with the wedding?” From the sound of it, Alice was probably in a restaurant or something, the din in the background making it a bit hard to hear her.

“Well, it’s going, um, really,  _ really  _ good! Great actually. Yeah, everything’s going well. Mhm.” Emma winced. Alice knew her far too well to believe that mess. She could practically see the other woman’s skeptical look.

“Hold on a sec.” Emma hears the sound of chairs moving and Alice excusing herself before the background noise drops considerably. “Alright, honey. Spill.”

“I may have, um. Met someone, kind of? Not really.”

After a pause, Alice replies incredulously. “What is that even supposed to  _ mean? _ ”

“You’re going to laugh at me.”

“I might. You’re going to tell me anyway, though.” A few moments of silence passed before Alice spoke again. “You _are_ going to tell me, right?”

“Yeah, I will, I just… have you ever locked eyes with someone and immediately known that that’s it? This is the person for you?”

“Can’t say I have, no. I was never one for any of that sappy shit, I leave that to you. So, did you talk her up? Show her those smooth Emma Nolan moves?” They both laughed at that. “Seriously though. Did you?”

“I mean… I couldn’t exactly do that. For, uh, reasons.”

The line went silent again, except for the muffled noise of the restaurant through the door. “Alice? Are you still there?”

Alice let out a disbelieving laugh. “Emma. You didn’t”

“I…”

“You just developed a crush on the bride, didn’t you Emma?”

“Well…”

“Did you even talk to her? Do you even know her name?”

“... No.”

Alice laughed again. “Oh. My. God. Emma. Nolan.”

“You know what? I have to go. Uh.. finish setting up for the reception.” Emma said hurriedly. “I’ll talk to you later.”

“Damn right you will. This is not over, Nolan. Not by a l-”

Emma ended the call.

 

* * *

 

The ceremony passed by in a blur. Before Alyssa was really aware of what was happening, she was saying her vows, kissing her now-husband, and walking out of the church arm-in-arm with Greg towards the limo. After they sat down and the limo began to roll out of the parking lot, Greg placed his hand on Alyssa’s knee, causing her to look up at him.

“Babe, are you alright? You seem a bit spaced.” Greg said softly.

Alyssa flashed him a smile that she hoped looked reassuring. “Yeah, I am. It’s just… a little hard to believe that it’s all happened, you know? We’re actually married.”

Greg seemed to contemplate the statement before letting a smile appear on his face as well. “Yeah. We are.” He leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to Alyssa’s lips, and Alyssa could feel him smiling against the kiss. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

The rest of the limo ride passed in relative silence, and Alyssa felt a strange sense of relief when they arrived at the reception, letting out a breath that she felt like she’d been holding the entire ride.

It wasn’t long before the rest of the guests arrived and the party was in full swing. Alyssa stepped out to the side and let herself take a moment to look around the room. Over to one side, she could see her mother looking around with an embarrassed look on her face as her father danced like a fool. At the other edge, Alyssa saw Kaylee and Shelby, talking in hushed whispers, seemingly scoping out the groomsmen. Alyssa knew that Kaylee had her eye on Nick, which was unfortunate because, well, he was Nick, but she wasn’t quite sure who Shelby was holding out for. Maybe Kevin? Which, okay, Kevin was a little dumb, but he was less of a douche than Nick. Either way, they were pressed closely together, arms linked as they looked around the room.

Alyssa shook her head at her best friends’ antics and headed over to the punch bowl to grab a drink. When she went to grab the ladle however, her brand new wedding ring began to slip off her finger, and before she realized what was happening, the ring was in the punch bowl.

Fuck.

Glancing around to make sure no one saw what was happening, she grabbed the ladle and tried to scoop out the ring, but it just kept on getting out. She stirred the punch, hoping to trap the ring between the ladle and the edge of the bowl and pull it out that way, but that didn’t work either.

Shit. _Shit._

 

* * *

 

Emma had never really been a fan of huge crowds. Even more so when the crowd was full of complete strangers. Still, Emma hung around the reception, manoeuvring her way through the sea of dancing guests as she made her way around the tent.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a beautiful, flowing white gown, and a somewhat-familiar mass of dark curls pulled into an intricate updo. She slowly made her way over to the woman, almost as if she was pulled by a magnetic force. Next thing Emma knew, she was once again looking into deep brown eyes as the woman… blocked the punch bowl with her body.

Emma didn’t notice that she had been staring until the other woman spoke up.

“Hi?”

She was looking at Emma with questioning eyes, a nervous smile on her face as she continued to lean awkwardly against the table. She raised an eyebrow, and Emma realized that she should probably respond.   
“Oh! Hi. We haven’t met. I’m Emma.”

The apprehensive look on the other girl’s face softened, her stance relaxing slightly. “I’m Alyssa.”

“It’s nice to finally get to meet you, Alyssa.” Emma held out her hand. “I did your flowers.”

Smiling a little bit more, Alyssa reached out and shook Emma’s hand. “You did? My flowers are incredible.”

Emma laughed nervously, letting go of Alyssa’s hand to rub at the back of her neck. “Thanks.”

Their eyes met once more, maintaining contact for a second before Emma looked away. “Anyway, um, I was gonna get a-” Alyssa moved to block her as she took a step towards the punch bowl. “A drink.”

This time it was Alyssa’s turn to laugh nervously, and Emma discovered that she wanted nothing more than to hear that laugh a million more times.

“I wouldn’t.”

“Why not? Is there something wrong? I’m happy to help out in any way I can.”

Alyssa opened and closed her mouth a couple times before her shoulders sagged. “My ring. I was going to get some of this punch crap and then-”

“Your wedding ring?” Emma raised an eyebrow.

Alyssa nodded, laughing. “It fell off.” Emma couldn’t help but laugh too. “Off and in there. My wedding ring is in there somewhere.

“You tried scooping it out with the ladle?”

“Yep. Didn’t do anything.”

“And you can’t empty it- no, it’s too big.” After thinking for a moment, Emma had what was probably one of her stupidest ideas to date. Then again, for Alyssa, she was willing to do stupid. Rolling up one of her sleeves, Emma looked up from the punch bowl at Alyssa. “Alright, I guess there’s only one thing to do. Cover me.”

“What?”

“Use the dress, I’m going in.”

 

~~~

 

Before Alyssa had the chance to process what Emma meant by that, she felt Emma’s hands on her waist moving her so that she blocked her from the view of the rest of the people at the reception.

Alyssa laughed despite herself. “What are you doing? You can’t just-” She felt her jaw drop when she saw Emma reach into the punch bowl. “I… I guess you can.” Alyssa fought to control the smile on her face as she saw a man walk up and approach the table. Schooling her features, Alyssa shifted her body to the right to intercept him.

“Hi!” She said, nerves pitching her voice a little too high. Alyssa cleared her throat. “Hi there.”

“They say white’s the colour of virgins. If I know Greg at all, the only thing virgin around here i the olive oil.”

Gross. Alyssa tried to focus on the somehow comforting presence of Emma, pressing into her back. She forced a polite smile across her face. “The old jokes really are the best, aren’t they?”

“I’m Rob, Greg’s boss. It’s nice to finally meet the woman he’s talked to much about.”

Greg’s talked about Rob, too, but none of it was ever good. Keeping the polite smile plastered on her face, Alyssa replied as sweetly as she could. “You’re just like he described.”

“Now, I need myself some booze. I’ve just…”

The rest of Rob’s statement faded away as Alyssa felt Emma’s still-damp right hand tap her left. Getting the clue, Alyssa raised her left hand behind her back, allowing Emma to slide the ring back onto her finger. Alyssa felt a shock go up her arm as Emma’s fingers lightly brushed her wrist before falling away completely. She vaguely registered movement behind her before she heard Emma’s voice right next to her ear.

“Hi!”

Alyssa felt a burst of defensiveness as she saw Rob look Emma up and down.

“This is Emma. She’s a florist.”

“The name’s Rob, but you can call me anything you’d like.” Ugh. Does this guy ever stop?

Emma, to her credit, looked unphased. She took Rob’s offered hand and shook it- with the hand that had just been in the punch bowl. Alyssa had to bite her lip to stop her from laughing out loud at the look on the man’s face.

Emma smirked. “And I’m sure I will.”

Rob gave them both one last confused look before turning and walking away. The moment he was out of earshot, both of them burst out laughing, Alyssa placing her hand on Emma’s shoulder to stop herself from falling over.

“That was…” Alyssa took a moment to collect herself. “You really are incredible, Emma.”

When Alyssa looked up, Emma was already looking at her with a soft smile on her face. For a second, they were lost in each other’s eyes once more, before Emma cleared her throat and straightened her body.

“Well, um…” Emma quickly wiped her hand on the tablecloth. “It sure has been interesting, Alyssa.”

Alyssa smiled. “It really has been, huh? Thanks for having my back there.”

Emma laughed and went into a deep bow. “Whatever you need, my lady.”

Alyssa couldn’t control the smile that broke across her face or the flutter in her heart at that. “Wait. Give me your phone.”

Raising an eyebrow, Emma fished her phone out of her pocket and unlocked it, handing it to Alyssa. “Sure?”

Alyssa quickly added herself as a contact and handed the phone back to Emma, almost recoiling at the shock she felt course through her body when their fingers brushed. “There. I don’t know what it is about you, Emma, but I’d… love to hang out with you more.” After a moment’s silence, Alyssa continued. “If you’re interested, of course! No pressure or anything. I just think you’re… you’re really cool.”

The skepticism on Emma’s face faded into a small, shy smile. “I think you’re really cool too, Alyssa. I may just take you up on that.”

Before Alyssa could respond, the upbeat song that had been playing faded into a slower ballad, and Nick approached the two of them, nodding at Alyssa before turning to Emma.

“May I have this dance?”

Emma glanced at Alyssa before looking back at Nick and smiling. “Alright.”

Nick pulled Emma onto the dance floor, and Alyssa found herself glued to her spot for a moment before collecting herself and roaming back into the fray to find Greg.

 

* * *

 

“We fit really nicely together, don’t we?”

Emma had only been dancing with Nick for a few moments, and she was hating every second of it. He was swaying much to close to her for her liking, and his hand was further down her waist than what was comfortable. Over Nick’s shoulder, she managed to make eye contact with Alyssa.

Alyssa raised an eyebrow questioningly as she swayed with Greg, to which Emma responded by tilting her head towards Nick ever so slightly and rolling her eyes.

“Sure we do, Nick.”

Alyssa’s little giggle almost made this entire mess worth it.

“You know, I lost my virginity to this song.”

Emma’s less-than-kind response was interrupted by the sound of someone tapping on a mic, followed by a bit of feedback. She took the opportunity to extract herself from Nick’s arms, breathing a sigh of relief as she pried herself free. Looking towards the table at the front of the tent, Emma saw Alyssa’s father, seemingly more than a little intoxicated, standing at the mic.

“Hello, everyone. Is this- is this thing on?”

There was a bit more feedback, people around her wincing at the high-pitched noise, when she heard a voice from over her shoulder.

“Nick, there you are.”

Both her and Nick turned around to see Mrs. Greene powering her way through the crowd towards them. “Get this idiot off of the microphone and make a proper speech.”

Up at the front, Mr. Greene seemed to be having trouble with whatever he was trying to do. “Unaccustomed as I am t- to public speaking…” The mic stand shortened and dropped a few inches, more feedback cutting off Mr. Greene’s slurred words.

“Dear God, what does he think he’s doing?” Mrs. Greene pushed past Nick and Emma, grabbing Nick’s wrist as she went, and took the microphone from the mic stand, handing it to Nick.

“Well, that was fun, wasn’t it guys? Now it’s time for a speech from your boy.” Emma cringed slightly at the burst of cheering she heard from one group at the corner of the tent that seemed to have every one of the groomsmen, as well as a particularly loud cheer from a woman next to her that Emma vaguely recognized as being one of Alyssa’s bridesmaids, which earned her a playful eye roll from the other bridesmaid that was sitting next to her.

“Anyway, these two are in love. And… I think that that’s… boring.” Laughter rang around the room. “They’ve been in love for years! Years with plenty of parties where they just stayed home, as they do, the  _ very  _ boring people that they are. They’ve acted like a married couple for so long that it’s, like, a relief that they’re finally married. So, before I do my duty as best man and screw a bridesmaid,” Nick dropped his voice. “You know who you are.”

Emma glanced quickly to her left, catching the one bridesmaid waggling her eyebrows at the woman who had cheered earlier.

“I would like to raise a glass to Alyssa and Greg.” A flurry of movement followed as everyone raised their glasses, Emma following suit.

“And now, this is a huge deal. Some say that the reason it’s taken him this long to get married is his fear of making this speech right here, but he’s doing it right now. He’s not sure he can do it, I know he can do it, please put your hands together for our boy Greg!”

Emma clapped politely as the groomsmen in the corner cheered yet again.

Greg took the microphone from Nick and cleared his throat. “Um…” The room fell into silence as they waited for him to begin. After a few agonizingly long moments, Emma watched as Alyssa stood up next to Greg and took the mic from him.

“Hey, everyone. I’m Greg, and welcome to my wedding.” 

Emma smiled widely at the woman, laughing despite the pit in her stomach.

“So I’m glad you’re all here looking at me, because I wanted to tell you all just how much I love Alyssa. What an amazing, wonderful, fantastic woman.”

Another peal of laughter echoed through the room, and Emma’s eyes shifted from Alyssa’s grin to the soft smile on Greg’s face before looking towards the floor, taking her hands out of her pockets and crossing her arms before beginning to walk out of the tent. Behind her, she could hear Alyssa and Greg whispering back and forth for a second before Alyssa spoke up once more.

“Um, okay, so this is Alyssa now. I’ve been looking forward to this day all my life, and I’m glad to be able to share it with so many people that I love, and, well, a few people that I’ve never met before, but I’m sure you’re all great.” More laughter. This woman really knew how to work a crowd. “I feel like I’ve known Greg all my life, and I know I’ll know him for the rest of it. He’s… he’s my best friend. They say fairy tales have happy endings, even though the getting there may be rough, but Greg and I were friends, and then lovers, and it’s been smooth sailing the whole way. Maybe that’s a better kind of fairy tale…”

Emma exited the tent and made her way to her truck.


	3. i have no time for it (i'm happy not knowing)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alyssa invites both Emma and Nick to dinner in hopes of setting them up together and figuring out exactly how to get rid of the butterflies that appear in her stomach whenever she thinks of Emma.  
> She doesn't tell Emma that Nick's gonna be there, though. Call it an honest mistake.  
> Emma, on the other hand, might gain something from this whole ordeal after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one is officially longer than the first two combined so i hope this'll tide y'all over because i leave for a 10 day trip tonight and i won't be able to write at all. oops? enjoy!
> 
> chapter title from the song "happy not knowing" by carly rae jepsen.

Alyssa awoke to harsh light shining into her eyes- guess they forgot to close the curtains last night- and her husband’s arm lying across her waist. Groaning, she brings her arm across her eyes to block the sunlight streaming in through their bedroom window and slowly extracts herself from Greg’s embrace.

Yesterday felt like a dream, but not for the reasons Alyssa was expecting. She knows she should be on cloud nine right now, waking up in her husband’s arms after a pretty much picture-perfect wedding (thanks to meticulous planning on her mother’s part), but instead, her thoughts were overrun by hazel eyes and slightly messy blonde curls and punch bowls and adorable laughs and bright smiles and calloused fingertips on her wrist and  _ Emma, Emma, Emma. _

Picking up her phone from the nightstand, Alyssa quickly checked the time. 8:37am. Her and Greg had planned on getting brunch today at around 11:30, and there was no way Alyssa was going back to bed, which left her with plenty of time to kill by… doing something. She scrolled through her phone for a second, posting a couple wedding pictures on Instagram, before an idea hit her.

She shook her husband awake. “Greg? Honey? Can I ask you something?”

Greg groaned. He opened a single eye and looked at her. “Hm?”

“Can I invite Nick and Emma over for dinner this week? Say, Friday?”

“Sure thing, hon. Can I go back to sleep now?”

“Oh! Of course.” She kissed his forehead. “Love you.”

His reply, which did vaguely sound like “I love you too,” was muffled by the pillow.

After shooting a quick text to Nick regarding her plan, she went to text Emma, before realizing that, though Emma had her number, she hadn’t texted yet, so Alyssa didn’t have hers. Crap.

Alyssa wracked her brain for ideas, wondering how she could get in contact with Emma. She could wait until Emma texted her, but Alyssa didn’t want to wait. She didn’t even know which flower shop Emma ran since her mother did all of that stuff, so she couldn’t go ask her in person- her mother! She could ask her mom! Alyssa tapped her mother’s contact on her phone, and after a couple rings, she answered.

“Alyssa? Dear, is everything okay?”

“Yeah! Don’t worry, mom, everything’s fine. Great, actually. I was just calling to ask you what the name of the flower shop was? That you got to do our flowers?”

“Ah yes, they were beautiful, weren’t they? That woman did do a wonderful job. Let me see… it’s a place called The Green Room, it’s over on the corner of 10th and Larch.”

“Thanks, mom!”

“Sure thing, sweetie! Say hi to Greg for me.”

“Will do!” Alyssa ended the call and wrote down a quick note telling Greg where she was in case he woke up before she got back, and address in mind, she left their apartment and got in the car.

 

* * *

 

Emma had just opened the store and was setting up her outdoor display for the day when a man entered the store, evidently panicked.

“Ma’am, you gotta help me. I need a flower. Just one. A good one! The best.”

He spoke at a rapid pace. It took Emma’s mind a couple seconds to understand what, exactly, he was saying.

“Okay?”

“This is my last chance. My last chance flower.” His voice dropped at the end, almost making Emma laugh at how serious he sounded.

“Your… your last chance?” Emma asked, still holding back her laughter.

The man nodded gravely. “I really, really fucked up. Only a flower can save me.” He pointed at a bunch near the centre of the store. “What about a rose? A red rose, what would that say?”

“Well, uh, love…” Emma started.

“Love’s nice, that works!”

“... And fidelity.”

“Not a red rose, then.” It clicked for Emma. So that’s what this was about then. Yikes. A customer is a customer, though, so Emma continued.

“No! Of course not, not a rose at all, it’s too obvious. Too, uh, cliche. If this really is your last chance, we’ve gotta find you something really special.” Emma walked off further into the store, trying to think of what could work for this particular situation. She heard a tapping on the doorframe. “I’ll be right with you!” She called out.

A familiar voice softly replied. “That’s fine.”

Emma turned. There, in the doorway to the flower shop, was a smiling Alyssa. It took Emma a second to recognize her, her hair down and face devoid of makeup, dressed in jeans and a comfortable-looking sweater, the morning light making her look even softer.

And maybe it was because Emma was already in way too deep over this woman- they had met and she had stuck her hand inside a punch bowl for her less than a minute later, after all- but she thought she looked just as beautiful now as she did last night at her wedding. Emma smiled back at her.

“Hi!” Emma said breathlessly.

“Hey.” If it was possible, Alyssa smiled even wider.

“How are you doing?”

“Good! Great, I just-”

Alyssa was cut off by the man slipping past her and out the door, saying something about looking at the flowers outside. Emma laughed and looked down at her shoes before looking back up at Alyssa, who was also looking down and fidgeting with the hem of her sweater.

Looking back up at Emma, Alyssa continued. “I just came by to say thanks.”

“Oh, it was my pleasure. Like I said,” Emma did a mock bow like she did at the wedding reception, causing Alyssa to giggle, “Whatever you need.”

The giggling died down, and for a moment, Emma and Alyssa just looked into each other’s eyes, soft smiles gracing both of their faces. Emma’s eyes flickered over to the window when she couldn’t quite hold eye contact anymore, and she remembered where she was.

“Shit. Sorry, I just gotta…” Pointing over to the man looking at the flowers by the window, Emma gave Alyssa an apologetic smile.

“Oh, right! Of course, sorry, go right ahead.” As Alyssa turned to stop blocking the doorway, the man waved her down.

“You! What’s your favourite flower.”

Emma watched Alyssa consider the question for a second, opening and closing her mouth a couple times before she answered. “I don’t know. I think I like lilies?”

Lilies. Emma wracked her brain trying to remember what those specific flowers meant and blushed slightly when she remembered.  _ Oh, the irony. _

“Hmm… they’re wrong.” Emma laughed a little at the slightly affronted look on Alyssa’s face before jumping back into action, grabbing a flower from a nearby stand.

“How about this? Bird of paradise.”

That seemed to capture his interest. “Keep talking.”

“Its real name is Strelitzia, named after Charlotte of Strelitz.” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Alyssa staring at her, a small smile on her face, seemingly quite interested in this. Emboldened, Emma continued. “She married King George III, had 15 kids. They never spent more than an hour apart. He actually-”

“Okay, stop talking.” He turned right back around and walked back outside.

Taken aback, Emma almost missed what Alyssa said next.

“Do you want to come to dinner?”

_ What? _   “What?”

“Oh!” Alyssa’s eyes widened as she realized how she worded the question.”I meant with us. Dinner with us. Um, me and Greg.” Emma thought about it for a moment, and seeing the contemplative look on her face, Alyssa continued. “I mean, you don’t-”

“I’d love to.”

“Really?” Emma smiled reassuringly at Alyssa’s question. “Sweet! Does this Friday work for you?”

“Yeah! Sure, Friday works.”

Alyssa beamed at her, making Emma’s heart flutter and butterflies erupt in her stomach. Has she always had those adorable dimples?

“Great! I’ll just send you the… actually,” Alyssa takes out her phone, handing it to Emma. “You have my number but, I, uh, don’t have yours. I forgot that that’s kinda why I came here.” She smiled sheepishly.

As Emma was about to start typing, the man walked back in. “Perfect.” Emma looked over to the doorway to see him holding a vaguely phallic-looking cactus. “This is the one. My last chance flower.” He handed her the money and turned. “Wish me luck!”

“Good luck?” Emma said, barely holding back a laugh. She shot Alyssa a slightly confused smile before typing in her contact info and handing the phone back to Alyssa, a similar electric shock travelling up her arm at the brush of their fingers. “There you go. Text me the info?”

“Yeah. I’ll see you then, I guess?”

“I’ll see you then.”

Alyssa walked out of the flower shop, turning around and smiling at Emma one last time before turning around the corner and out of sight, leaving Emma alone to think about what she had just agreed to.

Dinner. With the woman that she may or may not be in love with, and said woman’s husband. This was going to be interesting.

 

* * *

 

At a stoplight, Alyssa messaged Greg telling her she was on her way back and to meet her outside to go to brunch. She tapped  her fingers nervously against the steering wheel, heart still pounding after visiting Emma’s flower shop.

She had been as kind and effortlessly charming as Alyssa remembered. Alyssa found herself enraptured by Emma, especially when she was trying not to laugh at customers, or the way her eyes lit up as she explained the meaning of a flower.

Alyssa’s thoughts were interrupted when her phone buzzed twice in quick succession. She pulled up to the apartment complex and picked up her phone to find two new texts: one from Nick, confirming that he’d be at dinner on Friday- all according to plan- and one from Greg, saying he’ll be down in a moment.

Right as Alyssa finished reading Greg’s text, the door to the apartment complex opened, revealing her husband, who smiled and waved at Alyssa. Alyssa smiled back and unlocked the passenger door.

Greg slid into the passenger seat. “Hey, babe,” he said, pressing a quick kiss to the corner of Alyssa’s mouth before settling in the seat. “So, what did that florist say? Emma, right?”

“Emma’s in! Both her and Nick are down for dinner.” Alyssa couldn’t fight the smile that spread across her face. “Can you pull up the place on your phone and give me the directions? I’ve never been.”

“Great! I’ll cook.” Greg grinned, nudging Alyssa’s shoulder as she turned the key and pulled into the lane. He took his phone out and opened the map. “Next right.”

“Please don’t.” Alyssa laughed, turning right. “I asked because this is my plan-”

“Oh, no. Don’t do that to the poor girl. Left in two blocks.”

Alyssa glanced at Greg, confusion on her face. “I think they’d be great for each other. Don’t you think so?”

“I mean… turn left here, honey… he did say he thought he was onto something with her at the wedding before she left.” Greg said absentmindedly, focusing on the directions.

“There you go! It’s totally on.”

They drove for a few moments in silence before Alyssa spoke up again. “It’s… funny. I visited her to ask, but also to say thank you for what she did at our wedding.”

“Hm. Turn right onto Vine here.”

“You know when you’ve just met someone but right away… you feel like they’re going to be your friend?”

“We’re nearly there. Turn left onto 2nd.”

Alyssa barely registered the directions, tucking it into the back of her mind. “Who knows why. Past life, physiognomy.” Alyssa thinks back to their easy rapport at the wedding, to Emma’s smile when she walked into the flower shop. “But for some reason, you just kind of click.”

“‘Lys? Next left.”

Alyssa shook her head. “I don’t know if that makes any sense, but do you kind of get what I mean?”

“Alyssa. Honey. You missed it.” Greg had a look on his face that was a mix of amusement and slight confusion.”

“What?”

“You missed the turn.”

Alyssa’s eyes widened. “Oh shit! Let me just-” Greg laughed as Alyssa did a U-turn. “Sorry about that, hon.”

“It’s not a big deal.” Greg reached across and placed his hand on Alyssa’s knee. “I’d love to keep talking about your little past life theories once we’re sitting down for brunch and not in a moving vehicle that you are operating.”

Alyssa laughed nervously and turned onto 2nd street.

 

* * *

 

Emma closed the shop early on Friday after a rather uneventful day, which she was thankful for, because she could not calm the nervousness in her stomach at the thought of the dinner. She opened the door to her house to find her grandmother, Betsy, curled up on the couch, reading the newspaper.

“Hey, grandma, I’m home!” Emma called out, hanging her coat on the rack by the door and removing her shoes before stepping further into the house. She looked over at her grandmother. “Why aren’t you dressed yet?”

“I was, I was just settling in for the evening.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “It’s 5:00, didn’t you say you were going to go out later?”

“No, you said I was going out later.” Looking at the clock, Betsy looked back at Emma, confused. “Are you finished work already?”

“I’m, uh, busy tonight. Got plans.” Emma walked into the kitchen.”

Betsy’s face lit up. “What, a date? Does my granddaughter have a date?”

“No, I do not.” Emma peered around the corner. “But you could have.”

Betsy groaned. “Reading groups, bible studies, bridge clubs. Tragic attempts by lonely old coffin dodgers to meet someone before they bite the bullet.” Emma smiled to herself as she turned and re-entered the living room. “Everybody looking for love.” Betsy looked at Emma as Emma took a seat on the arm of the couch. “Speaking of, what are your plans for tonight?”

Emma sighed. “You know the wedding I just worked?” Betsy nodded. “Well, Alyssa- uh, the bride- stopped by earlier this week to say thank you and invited me over to dinner with them. So. There’s that.” Emma looked down at her hands, fidgeting slightly.

Betsy smiled knowingly. “That’s sweet, but there’s more you’re not telling me, isn’t there, dear?”

Emma got up abruptly. “No, there isn’t. You know what? I actually have to go get ready.” She basically ran up the stairs on the way to her room.

“Alright, sweetie! Wear the green sweater, you look great in that!” Betsy called after her, laughing.

Half an hour later, Emma came down wearing the green sweater, ignoring her grandmother’s laughter on the way out to her truck.

 

* * *

 

Alyssa was just putting the final touches on her make up when Greg came bounding into their room.

“Sorry for being late, beautiful. Got caught up.” She leaned back to allow him to plant a kiss on her cheek.

“How was work?”

“Horrible. I’m quitting.”

Alyssa scoffed. “You always say that.” She continued to touch up her lipstick as he sighed.

“Just watch me. One day, I’ll do it. Tell them I don’t like them or their cash, though I do like their cash.” She made eye contact with him in the mirror and smirked teasingly. “Whatever. I’ll think of something and then walk out.”

“I’ll be there waiting with champagne when you do.”

Greg walked out of the bathroom, removing his blazer and grabbing a shirt from the closet. “You know, I kinda wish it was just us tonight.”

Alyssa put her lipstick away. “He’ll definitely be into her, right? Nick, he’ll like Emma?”

Greg barked out a laugh. “She’s got a pulse, right?”

Alyssa bit her lip. “That’s… I mean… would you? You’d like her, right?”

Greg finished pulling on the new shirt and began to button it up. “I mean, she’s not really my type, but yeah, I guess?” He finished with the buttons and looked at Alyssa. “What do you think?”

“Of- of her?” Alyssa floundered for a second. “I, uh, I haven’t really…”

“Oh, no. I meant the shirt. What do you think of the shirt?”

Alyssa breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh. It’s gorgeous. You’re gorgeous.” 

Greg smiled and pulled her into a kiss as Alyssa’s phone went off. She glanced at the caller ID before picking up, a smile on her face!

“Hey, Emma!”

“Hey! I’m downstairs.”

“I’ll be down there soon!” The call ended and Alyssa turned to Greg. “I’ll go get her.”

“Alright, honey. I’ll finish setting up in here. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

Alyssa jogged down the stairs, smiling widely when she saw Emma on the other side of the clear doors, blonde curls almost glowing in the lamplight, dressed in a soft-looking green sweater light black jacket and holding a beautiful bouquet of flowers. She opened the door.

“Come on in! You look… you look great.”

Emma smiled shyly, and Alyssa’s heart fluttered. “Thank you. Um… look what I brought!” She said, gesturing to the flowers. Alyssa quickly ran back before the elevator could close, and pressed the button to the 5th floor. “Oh, thank you so much! They’re beautiful, Greg’ll flip.”

They spent the rest of the elevator ride in relative silence. Emma trailed Alyssa to their door. Opening the door to their apartment, Alyssa called out. “Sweetheart?”

Greg popped his head out of the kitchen, smiling. “Here I am!” He walked over to the two, putting his arm around Alyssa. “Hi again, Emma.”

“Hi, Greg.”

There was a moment of awkward silence before Alyssa pulled Greg back into their apartment. “Emma, come check out our new sofa!”

Greg rolled his eyes. “Yeah, our very expensive new sofa.”

“Well,” Emma shrugged, “I mean, you can’t put a price on comfort.”

Alyssa dramatically placed a hand on her forehead, faking a swoon, which caused Emma to laugh. “You see, Greg? Woman after my own heart.”

Laughing a little as well, Greg turned to Emma. “Emma, do you believe in reincarnation? Alyssa here was talking about how she felt like you two had met before.”

Emma looked at Alyssa quizzically. Alyssa looked down. “I mean, that’s not exactly what I-”

“I think I’d have remembered.” Alyssa’s gaze found Emma’s.

“Alright,” Greg cut in. “Let’s, uh, hang these flowers and get that jacket in some water.”

“I’ll do it.” Alyssa took the flowers and Alyssa’s jacket from the two and began to walk away, taking a few deep breaths to calm the butterflies in her stomach.

 

* * *

 

Emma let Greg lead her over to their apparently expensive new sofa and took a seat as Greg went to grab them a couple glasses and a bottle of wine.

“How have you been, Greg? How’s life been since the wedding? I haven’t talked to you at all since then!” 

Greg took a seat next to her and poured them both a glass. “Well, not much has changed actually. It’s been nice, but mostly the same. Work. Trying to write a book on the side.”

“Ooh, a book? What about?”

Greg’s eyes lit up at the prospect of talking about his book to someone. “Well, uh, it’s a travel book. Basically, I’ve been meaning to write a book that’s, like, a guide to whatever the coolest place on the planet is at the time.” Emma nodded, letting her eyes wander for a moment to where Alyssa was placing the flowers in some water, thinking she may have caught Alyssa smiling softly to herself before she looked back at Greg. “Like, if it’s February, it’s the Rio Carnival, and if it’s, say, May, it’s bulls in Pamplona. So, if you want to go on a holiday, just open this book, and there’s me, telling you where to go.”

“Because you’ve been there?” Emma took a sip of her wine.

Visibly deflating a little, Greg shook his head. “I mean, that was the plan, but you know. Alyssa. Life. Work.”

Emma flashed him a smile that she hoped was reassuring. “I’m sure you’ll be able to someday.”

“Maybe.” Greg trailed off. “Anyway, how about you? I feel like I don’t know anything about you. Married? Ever been married, ever gonna be married?” 

Emma laughed nervously. “Nope, no, and… I don’t know, maybe, now that it’s legal everywhere here.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, uh, I’m a lesbian.”

She could practically see the gears turning in his hand as he laughed nervously for a moment before humming thoughtfully. “Oh. Lovely. Well done!” Emma nearly broke at that last one before she heard the buzzer go off. “Oh, that must be Nick.”

Emma leaned back into the sofa. “So Nick’s coming.”

Greg looked at her, an apologetic look on his face. “Yep.”

 

* * *

 

After they all sat down to eat, the room was quiet for a while, save for the sound of utensils against plates. Alyssa glanced between Nick and Emma constantly as she choked down her food. Greg was great, but she really regretted letting him cook for this one.

“Greg?” Nick said, breaking the silence. Greg lifted his head to look at Nick. “This is… bad, dude.” Both Emma and Alyssa laughed.

“You think so?”

Alyssa spoke up this time. “It is, sweetheart. It’s pretty bad.” She smiled apologetically at her husband.

“Anyway, more importantly, listen. It’s been about a week now. Let’s hear it, man. How much better is sex after marriage?”

Alyssa rolled her eyes at Nick. “Please.”

He continued. “Because when I’ve had sex after they were married, they have said that it’s fantastic.” He looked at Alyssa. “Alyssa?”

Alyssa leaned back in her chair. “Get married and find out yourself.”

It was Greg’s turn to roll his eyes this time. He shot a playful smirk at his wife. “Please. Nick couldn’t make that commitment, we’re talking two or three years of his life here.”

“So I’m not a one-person person. Sue me.”

“You really don’t think your other half is out there?”

Alyssa saw her opportunity. “Or, you know, in here.” She raised her eyebrows at Nick before using her head to gesture towards Emma.

“Actually, Alyssa-”

She turned to look at Greg. “What, there are some gorgeous women around!”

Nick piped up. “Yes, there are, and I’m trying to sleep with as many as I can.”

“And you never fail, do you?” Greg said under his breath. She heard Emma laugh lightly at that.

“Well, that’ll all change when you meet Ms. Right.” Alyssa said.

Greg scoffed. “And how exactly am I supposed to know when that happens?”

Alyssa thought for a moment. “I guess… you don’t know, not right away. It just feels…” She searched for the words. “... Warm, and comfortable, and you hang in there and give it a chance, and before you know it, you’re like… yeah.” She moved her eyes from Nick to Greg, lingering for a moment on Emma in between, who was looking down at her plate. “This is it. Must be love.”

Greg smiled back at her. “Yeah, I’m with her.”

Nick shrugged. “Sure, I’m with her too.”

“I disagree.”

Alyssa whipped her head around to face Emma, who was pointedly looking anywhere but at her.

“I think you know immediately, as soon as your eyes... then everything that happens from then on out just kinda proves that you had been right in that very first moment.” Emma’s eyes seem to unfocus before locking onto Alyssa, looking right into her warm brown eyes. “When you suddenly realize that you were incomplete and now you’re… you’re whole.”

Emma continued to hold Alyssa’s gaze, hazel eyes intense, almost challenging her to say otherwise.

To her left, she heard Greg speak up. “Actually, I agree with Emma.”

She heard Nick speak up, too. “Same.”

“Alright, now that that’s sorted out, who wants some dessert?”

Emma looked at Greg. “Yeah.”

“No.” Alyssa sat up straighter, looking at Emma.

“No?” Emma questioned.

“No. If you think that, do you think that everyone that doesn’t have all that… stuff, is settling for less?”

“That’s not what I’m saying-”

“That kind of is what you’re saying.” Alyssa replied, leaning further in.

“I think she said it a bit nicer.” Nick mumbled. Alyssa ignored him.

Greg popped out from behind the refrigerator door. “Cake, anyone?”

 

* * *

 

After the entire debacle at dinner, Emma excused herself and went to go sit on the railing of the balcony. It was raining slightly, and Emma was a bit chilly, but she didn’t mind. She looked out towards the skyline.

She hadn’t meant to run her mouth like that at dinner. Then again, there were plenty of things that Emma found herself doing since meeting Alyssa that she wouldn’t have done before. Between the intensity of whatever she was feeling for Alyssa, and Nick’s aggravating advances, Emma had just… lost it, just a bit.

She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself, regretting not grabbing her jacket before heading out here. It was colder than she thought. Just as she was about to get up and grab it, the door to the balcony slid open, and Alyssa stepped out before sliding the door shut behind her.

“What are you doing out here?” Alyssa smiled at her, question evident on her face. Emma smiled back sheepishly.

“It’s nice.” She said, gesturing to the lights of the city.”

Alyssa laughed. “It’s raining! Come on, at least join me in the covered part of the balcony, if you want to enjoy the fresh air so much.” Alyssa held out her hand.

Hesitating for a moment, Emma took Alyssa’s hand, butterflies in her stomach fluttering wildly at how well their hands seemed to fit together. Alyssa pulled Emma to her side.

“Greg doesn’t like to come out here. Something about the subconscious fear that he’ll throw himself off, but he freaks when I get near the edge too.” Silence fell between the two of them, Alyssa looking down before looking at Emma’s face once more. “Sorry about what happened at dinner.”

Emma gave her a teasing smile. “I’ve eaten worse.”

Alyssa laughed again, this one reaching her eyes before her it dropped. “I kind of went off.”

“You didn’t go off.” Alyssa raised an eyebrow at her. “Okay, so maybe you did. Just a little bit.”

They turned their bodies to fully face each other. Alyssa’s brow furrowed, and she reached out to rub Emma’s arms. “Emma, you’re all cold and wet.”

Emma blushed at the contact. “I’m… I’m fine.” Her eyes widened as Alyssa went to take off her own jacket and hand it to Emma.

“Put this on.”

“I’m fine, I promise!”

Alyssa ignored Emma protests and draped her jacket around Emma’s shoulders, the blush on Emma’s face deepening.

“Now you’re going to get cold!”

They bantered back and forth for a bit, choking out words through laughter. Emma’s heart pounded as she realized how close together they were. She swore she could count Alyssa’s eyelashes.

There was a knocking at the balcony door. Greg slid it open.

“What are you guys doing out here?”

“Uh… nothing.” Alyssa said.

“Well, Nick wants to play strip poker, and I really want him to go home.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “I’ve only had, like, one drink. I’ll drive him.”

Greg smiled gratefully. “Thanks, Emma.”

 

* * *

 

Saying their goodbyes to Alyssa and Greg, Emma corralled Nick into the passenger seat of her pickup.

“Alright, Nick, just give me the directions to your place as we go.”

“Sounds good, cutie.”

Emma rolled her eyes. Hopefully Nick didn’t live too far out. She turned the key and pulled out of the parking lot.

“Alright, which way?”

“Left ahead. I don’t know about you, though, but I’m not ready for this night to end.”

She was more than ready for this night to end. She ignored his statement.

“You alright, Emma?”

Emma couldn’t help the scoff that escaped her lips. “Why, because I don’t want to have sex with you?”

“You don’t need to have sex with me, just… don’t ice me out like that. What’s up?”

Emma rubbed at her eyes. Maybe she had judged this man a little too quickly. He’s Greg’s best friend, after all, and Greg was a genuinely good guy, so there must be something about Nick. “I’m sorry. Really.”   
That seemed to placate him. “Well, you’ve got something on your mind, that’s obvious. You know what you should do? Share it with me. Because beneath this rugged exterior, there’s a sensitive soul.”

Emma considered that for a second. “No, there isn’t.”

Nick smiled. “No, there isn’t. Feel free to tell me anyway, though.”

An idea hit Emma. “Actually, Nick, I know a place where we can talk. They also serve some killer cheesecake.”

The smile on his face grew. “Sounds good to me.”

After a few more minutes of driving later, Emma pulled into Trees Coffee, where she knew Alice was working the late shift.

“Alright, get on out. This place is my favourite.”

Nick followed her through the door. Alice saw her almost immediately and waved, a confused look on her face as her eyes landed on Nick. Emma shot her a look that said “Don’t ask.”

She seemed to get the deal. “Hey there, Emma. Who’s this?”

“Alice, this is Nick. Nick, Alice.”

They shook hands, Nick hanging on for a little too long. Emma bit back a laugh when she saw Alice wipe her hand on her apron.

“I’ll have the usual, Alice, and I’ll get one for Nick here, too.”

“Alright, hon. Anything to drink?”

Emma looked at Nick. “Just a regular coffee will be fine for me.”

Alice nodded. “And a chamomile tea with honey for you, Emma?”

Emma smiled at her friend. “You know me too well.” Turning to Nick, she spoke again. “I’ll take care of this, you go find us a seat.”

Once Nick was sufficiently far away, Alice whispered to Emma. “So what’s this all about?”

“Remember the bride at the wedding?” Emma whispered.

“You mean the one you fell in love with?”

“Shut up.” Emma hissed out, her cheeks heating up. “She invited me over to dinner with her and her husband, and apparently she wanted to set me up with Nick over there.” Emma glared at Alice when she smiled widely. “He drank a little too much, so I’m driving him home. That’s all.”

“Sweetie, if he causes you any trouble, just let me know, okay?”

“I know, Alice. Thank you.”

“Anytime, Em.”

Emma walked over to the booth Nick was in and slid into the seat across from him.

“Greg told me you’re gay.”

We’re going right into it, then. “I am a lesbian, Nick.”

“So, what’s up? It’s a girl thing, huh? It’s gotta be. Come on, tell me all about it. Spare no details.”

From Emma’s experience, guys like Nick tended to be a little weirder about her being a lesbian, so she took the win. Deciding once again that he couldn’t be that bad, she decided to speak.

“Have you ever met someone and just…” Emma gestured wildly for a bit, unsure of what else to say. “But there was someone else already?”

“Yeah, sure.” Alice arrived with their cheesecake and drinks. They thanked her. “The hot ones are always taken.”

Okay, so the guy’s a little confused, but he’s got the spirit. “So, what do you do?”

“What do I do?” Emma nodded. “I fuck them. Partner’s their problem not mine.”

That wasn’t exactly what Emma wanted to hear. She took a sip of her tea. “Yeah, see, I don’t think anyone should mess with other couples.” She sighed deeply. “Don’t cause that pain, ever. You just face the fact that it’ll never happen, and you… you just walk away. Get with someone available instead.”

Nick smirked. “Your place or mine?”

Emma rolled her eyes, laughing, and took a bite of her cheesecake.

Nick, to his credit, laughed as well, before digging into his own cheesecake.

This definitely wasn’t where Emma was expecting this night to end up, but maybe she had at least found a new friend.


	4. it's such a feeling that my love (i can't hide)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A chance meeting while out grocery shopping leads to some overdue introductions, much to the chagrin of both Alyssa and Emma, and both of them start to realize that there may be some things that need to be discussed, and soon.  
> Not now, though. Not now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess who's back  
> back again  
> dani's back with a new chapter! sorry for the delay, i got back from vacation and my brain just would not write. hope this was worth the wait!
> 
> chapter title from the song "i want to hold your hand" by the beatles, though i was listening to the version from across the universe for this chapter.

 

“So let me get this straight.” Alice said slowly, pushing the cart through the supermarket. Emma smiled a little before opening her mouth to say something. “I know you’re about to tell a gay joke so I’m going to stop you there.” Looking to her right, Alice saw Emma pout.

“Fine.”

“Yeah, yeah, you love me. Anyway. You want to invite your crush-”

“I don’t have a crush...” Emma mumbled.

“- your not-crush, then,” Alice amended, rolling her eyes, “and her husband to Trees’ open mic night this Thursday.”

“Yep.”

“And you’re going to sing a love song at this open mic that you have invited your not-crush and her husband to.”

Emma winced and shrunk in on herself, putting both her hands in her pockets. “Well, when you put it that way…”

“How else am I supposed to put it, Emma?” Alice exclaimed. A few heads turned their way at Alice’s sudden outburst. Both Emma and Alice smiled and waved apologetically before turning back to their conversation. “Like, seriously, girl.”

“I don’t know, I guess I just… wanted to repay them somehow, you know? For inviting me to dinner.”

“You already brought them flowers.” Alice deadpanned.

“I work at a flower shop!”.

“You specifically got them lilies, which just so happen to be her favourite flower.” Alice continued, raising an eyebrow.

“I thought it’d be nice!”

Throwing her hands up in surrender, Alice laughed. “Hey, I was just pointing out the facts. You know what? Do it. At least I’m working that night. I could use the free entertainment, and you know I’m not talking about the open mic.”

Emma nudged Alice with her shoulder and rolled her eyes. “Screw you.”

“I love you too, babe.” Alice blew Emma a kiss as they reached the aisle and rounded the corner to turn into it, nearly colliding with another cart in the process. Both carts jerked to a stop, Emma holding her arm out in front of Alice.

“Crap! Sorry about that!” Finally getting a proper look at the people whose cart they nearly crashed into, Emma’s eyes widened as she was met with the equally surprised faces of Alyssa and Greg.

 

* * *

 

“Alyssa, you gotta promise me the whole matchmaking thing is over.” Greg said, rounding the corner into the next aisle.

“Are you kidding?” Alyssa walked beside him, grabbing a few cans off the shelf and placing them in their cart. “Last night went great, they left together and everything! I can hear the bells.”

Greg seemed confused for a moment before he smiled. “Wait, you didn’t realize?” He laughed slightly. “Oh God, honey.”

Now it was Alyssa’s turn to look confused. “Realize what? What do you mean?” She thought she heard a familiar voice somewhere close by, followed by an unfamiliar one saying what she thought was “I love you too, babe,” but her mind was focused on what Greg was saying.

Turning to his right, Greg went to grab another can off the shelf. “Well, the thing you didn’t know about Emma is-”

He was cut off by Alyssa stopping the cart to stop it from colliding with another cart that was just rounding the corner. Alyssa vaguely registered the other person swearing and apologizing before Greg continued.

“... Is she’s right here! Hey, Emma!”

Emma looked as caught off guard as Alyssa felt, and Alyssa watched as she stuttered out a greeting.

“Uh, hey guys!” Emma awkwardly waved, and Alyssa smiled a bit before she realized that Emma was with another girl who seemed to be side-eyeing Emma with the slightest smirk on her face.

“Weirdest thing, actually, we were just talking about you!” Greg said.

“Really? Well, all good things, I hope?” Emma smiled, and the other woman’s eyes flit between Emma and Alyssa quickly before Alyssa saw her nudge Emma ever so slightly while clearing her throat, smirk still present on her face. Alyssa’s brow furrowed.

Emma looked confused for a second as well before her eyes widened. “Oh! Right. Greg, Alyssa, this is Alice.”

Greg smiled warmly. “It’s nice to meet you, Alice.” Alyssa nodded in acknowledgement, forcing a smile across her face despite her confusion and some other unpleasant feeling settling on her chest that she couldn’t quite identify.

“It’s nice to meet you two, as well.” She turned and raised an eyebrow at Emma, and the two had some sort of nonverbal discussion before Emma turned back to her and Greg.

“I just wanted to thank you guys for dinner, and, um. I was wondering if you guys were free this Thursday? Around 7?”

Alyssa leaned forward, putting her weight onto the cart. “Yeah, I think so. Why?”

“Well, uh, Trees- the little coffee shop that Alice here works at-” Emma pointed her thumb at Alice and Alice gave a little salute. “- is hosting an open mic night that night! I’m gonna be performing for it and I, uh, would love to see you guys there?” Emma smiled nervously, and Alyssa thought she heard Alice laugh a little, her smirk widening into a full blown grin. “Drinks and stuff are on me. Their cheesecake is to die for. No pressure though! I get that it’s a weeknight and you two might be busy and-”

Sensing that Emma was about to start talking herself in circles, Alyssa reached out and put her hand on Emma’s arm. “We’d love to.”

Emma looked at Alyssa’s hand on her arm before looking back up at Alyssa with wide eyes, and Alyssa pulled away quickly liked she’d been burned, placing her hand in her pocket.

An awkward silence reigned for a second before Alice spoke up, placing her arm around Emma’s shoulders, causing a pang of _something_ to go through Alyssa’s body. “Anyway, we should probably get going. Don’t want to hold you two up. See you two on Thursday?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” Greg said, smiling at the two. Emma waved as Alice pulled her away, and Alyssa thought she heard Emma ask Alice something about going out before they were out of earshot.

Huh.

 

* * *

 

When Emma thought she was far enough away from Alyssa, she tried to quickly bring something up that would stop Alice from talking about whatever just happened back there. “So, are you going out tonight? Because I was thinking maybe I-”

“Whoa-ho, there, sweetheart, what the hell was going on there?”

Crap.

“I, um. I guess I just asked them to come to the open mic?” Emma said, continuing to push the cart through the store.

Alice crossed her arms. “You know that’s not what I meant. Nice to finally meet your mystery woman, though.” Alice looked thoughtful for a moment, lip jutting out slightly as she nodded. “She’s hot.”

“Alice!” Emma hissed, looking around to make sure Greg and Alyssa weren’t nearby.

“Just saying what you’re thinking, babe.” Alice said nonchalantly.

“I- I don’t- She’s not- We’re just friends!” Emma whispered.

“Keep telling yourself that, Em, but you’d like it to be something more, wouldn’t you?” Seeing Emma sigh deeply, shoulders slumping, Alice softened and uncrossed her arms, placing one hand on Emma’s back. “Hey. You know what? How does an impromptu movie night sound?”

Emma’s eyes lit up a little, smiling at her best friend. “Don’t you have plans?” She said, raising an eyebrow.

“Fuck them.”

Emma considered the thought for a moment. “ _Captain Marvel_ at yours? 8-ish?”

Alice ruffled Emma’s hair, causing her to laugh loudly before handing the cart back to Alice. “I’ll order pizza. We can get some ice cream while we’re here.”

Taking a moment to fix her hair, Emma fell back into step with Alice. “Hell yeah.”

“Hell yeah. Really though, Emma, this is tragic.”

“Shut up.”

“Like, she’s pretty, but have you seen her? She’s not just heterosexual, she’s, like, _Barbie_ hetero- hey!” Alice cut herself off as she once again saw Alyssa and Greg pass by. Emma sighed and braced herself. “How are you doing? We were just talking about you this time!”

God, she did love her, but she was going to kill Alice one day.

 

* * *

 

After a few more minutes of idle conversation while they shopped, Greg broached the topic again.

“Emma’s gay.”

Alyssa’s head whipped around to face him, unsure if she had heard him correctly. She tilted her head. “What?”

“That’s what I was trying to tell you earlier. When I was telling you to stop the whole matchmaking thing with her and Nick? It’s because she’s a lesbian.”

Alyssa didn’t know why, but something about those words- she’s a lesbian- caused a strange feeling to bloom in her chest. It took her a moment to reply. “Oh.”

“Yeah. So her and Nick are a no-go.” Greg perked up a bit. “Do you think that’s the girlfriend?”

That one caught Alyssa off guard. “Who, Alice?” Alyssa’s nose scrunched at the thought.

“I mean, they seemed pretty close from what I could tell. What do you think?”

Alyssa didn’t know what she thought, but luckily- or unluckily, she wasn’t quite sure- she was saved from having to answer by a familiar voice.

“Hey! How are you doing? We were just talking about you this time!” Alice turned their cart to face them and leaned onto the handle, seemingly ever-present smirk on her face. “So, what have you two been up to in the past, like, two minutes?”

Alyssa turned to Greg to see him deep in thought, and could see the question he was about to ask right before he said it. Unfortunately for her, she was a little too late to stop it.

“Alice, are you gay?”

 _Oh God._ “Oh God.” Alyssa pinched the bridge of her nose.

Alice, to her credit, sounded completely unphased. “Am I gay? I’m ecstatic!”

Looking up, Alyssa noted that Emma looked similarly embarrassed, her face quickly reddening as she laughed nervously.

Alyssa tried to drag Greg away. “Honey, we gotta finish up, mom’s over for dinner, remember? You know how she gets-”

“So are you two…” Greg asked, pointing between Emma and Alice.

Emma’s eyes widened while Alice just grinned. “No.” Emma replied quickly.

“No.” Alice said as well, pouting.

“Yeah, no, we’re not… nope.”

“I have tried before,” Alice said, pulling Emma close. Emma rolled her eyes affectionately, a small smile finding its way onto her face. “But she has eyes for someone else, unfortunately.”

Alyssa frowned as Emma glared at Alice, feeling a sudden need to be anywhere but here. She tugged on Greg’s arm. “Babe?”

“Hm?” Greg looked at her. Alyssa simply raised her eyebrows and tilted her head, hoping he’d get the message. “Oh! Yeah, we should probably go.”

“Sorry for holding you up.” Emma said, shooting another playful glare at Alice. “I’ll text you the info for Thursday?” She looked right into Alyssa’s eyes this time, cheeks still a bit flushed.

“Definitely.” Pulling Greg by the arm towards the checkout lines, she waved at Emma. “See you then!”

She saw Alice salute at her cheekily out of the corner of her eye as she turned away, and Alyssa couldn’t get away from the laughter behind her fast enough.

 

* * *

 

Alyssa pulled off her sweater, huffing as she rifled through her closet and grabbed another one. That was the third one that she had tried, and yet nothing quite felt right. Everything felt just a bit off- too formal, too casual, a little scratchy- but Alyssa wouldn’t let herself think of why this mattered so much to her.

Her phone went off just as she started pulling on the latest sweater. She awkwardly fumbled her way towards the nightstand, answering the phone even though the sweater was only half-pulled on, not bothering to check the caller ID.

“Hello?”

“Hey, h-”  
“Greg! Where are you, babe? We need to leave soon!”

She heard him sigh. “That’s what this is about. I don’t think I can make it.”

Alyssa stopped moving. “Wait, why not?”

Greg sighed again, and Alyssa could practically see his head in his hands. “Rob left early with his girlfriend so I had to pick up some of the slack.”

“That guy’s such a dick.”

“I know right?” Greg laughed incredulously. “His girlfriend’s so sweet, too, met her today. Don’t know what she sees in him, I know for a fact he’s cheating on her.”

Alyssa finished pulling on her sweater. “Yikes. Does she know?”

“I have no clue, but I told him, you know, if you want to leave, just tell her.”

Looking at herself in the mirror, Alyssa smiled. Perfect. Emma would love this one.

“Babe? You still there?”

She picked her phone back up again. “Yeah! Uh, maybe he doesn’t want to leave.” Alyssa took a deep breath. “Maybe he doesn’t know what he wants.”

Greg scoffed. “Whatever it is, he needs to figure it out before someone gets hurt.”

Alyssa froze. “Yeah. You’re right.”

“Hey, sorry again for bailing on you last minute.”

Grabbing the keys, Alyssa made for the door. “It’s no problem, hon. I’m sure Emma will understand.”

“Tell her I said hi!”

“Will do. Love you!”

Alyssa hung up and sent a quick text to Emma before leaving her apartment.

_Greg can’t make it, he got held up at work :( Looks like it’s just us!_

 

* * *

 

Alice just laughed when Emma showed her the text.

“Oh, man. You’ve really done it now, Em.”

“Fuck. Alice. Why did you let me do this? _Why did I think of doing this?_ You’re my best friend, you’re supposed to talk me out of shitty decisions!” Emma’s hand tapped nervously on her jeans, her eyes flitting constantly towards the door of the coffee shop.

Alice barked out a laugh. “Emma, when have I _ever_ discouraged your bad decisions? And hey, in your defense, her husband _was_ coming until about 10 minutes ago, apparently.” She called out another order, handing a customer her pumpkin spice latte before placing her hands on the counter and facing Emma. “Why’re you so nervous this time around, anyway? This isn’t the first time you’ve invited a girl to an open mic.”

The smirk on Alice’s face said she knew _exactly_ why Emma was so nervous.

“This is different and you know it. She’s just... _God,_ Alice, she’s so thoughtful and kind and beautiful but she’s so off limits in so many ways. She’s probably straight, and even if she isn’t she’s-“ Emma’s voice dropped as the door to the coffee shop opened.

Alyssa walked in, nose a little red from the cold. She was all bundled up in a peacoat, scarf wrapped tightly around her neck. Her eyes scanned the room for a second before landing on Emma by the counter and smiling brightly.

She was beautiful.

“Hello? Earth to Emma Nolan? Do you read me?” Emma turned towards Alice, rolling her eyes at the shit-eating grin on her friend’s face. Alice looked at Alyssa, who was weaving her way between people and tables, heading towards the counter, before she looked back at Emma, who seemed even more nervous than before. “Guess it’s showtime, Nolan.” Alice winked and dodged out of the way of Emma’s lighthearted smack, walking out of sight just as Alyssa approached.

 

* * *

 

The first thing Alyssa noticed when she walked into the coffee shop was how _soft_ everything looked.

Fairy lights had been strewn around, the main source of light in the room, the normal lights having been dimmed for tonight’s performances. The warm light accentuated the dark browns and deep reds of the furniture, creating an extremely cozy atmosphere.

Alyssa scanned the gathering crowd in search of the reason she was in this unfamiliar environment in the first place, eyes landing on familiar blonde curls by the counter. She smiled despite herself, and her heart fluttered as Emma smiled back at her. Making sure not to bump into anyone, Alyssa worked her way through the coffee shop towards the smiling girl at the other end.

Alyssa ignores the feeling in her stomach when the woman from the supermarket- Alice, she thinks- shoots Emma a wink, which Emma smiles at, before walking away. She had said that they weren't together, right?

Not that Alyssa cares. No, not at all. She has Greg, and she definitely _does not_ care about whatever it is that's happening between Emma and Alice. She is definitely _not_ jealous of the comfortable affection between them, and her heart does _not_ flutter when Emma turns her gaze back towards her and smiles even more brightly.

“Hey, you. I’m glad you could make it.”

“Hey!” Alyssa pulled her into a tight hug, squeezing her for a bit before letting go. “Greg says he’s sorry he couldn’t make it, but work pulled him out last minute.” Alyssa rolled her eyes. “The guy that approached us at the wedding? That’s his boss. Total asshole.”

Emma cringes in sympathy. “Well, you can tell him that it’s fine. I do these pretty often, so he can just come to the next one!” She nodded her head towards the counter. “Want anything? My treat.”

“Oh, you really don’t have to-”

“Hey, I invited you to this thing.” Emma smiled warmly at her, and, well, how could Alyssa say no to that?

Alyssa fought down a blush. “Okay.”

She let Emma lead her to the counter, where Alice was waiting for them.

“Hey there, Alyssa! Greg couldn’t make it?” Alice said, leaning forward onto the counter.

Alyssa shrugged. “Work stuff. Asshole boss. You know how it is.”

Alice rolled her eyes. “Don’t I ever.” She chuckled. “Anyway, what can I get for you?”

“Just a chai latte, thanks!”

As Alice was punching in the order, Emma nudged Alyssa with her shoulder, causing a spark to go through Alyssa’s body. Alyssa watched her, unable to take her eyes away from Emma’s smile as Emma paid for her drink.

“You know what? Just for you two, I’ll bring it out to the table. Just take a seat, sweetheart.” The sound of Alice’s voice pulled Alyssa back to the present. She just caught Alice shooting them a quick wink before going to make the drink.

Alyssa blushed. Emma must have seen it, because she shook her head and smiled reassuringly. “Don’t mind her. She’s always like that.” Emma led her to a table pretty close to the stage that had an open guitar case lying next to it. “We’ll be sitting here. I’m actually up first, so, uh…” She pointed towards the stage. “Gotta go get ready.”

“Sure! Good luck up there! Or, um. Break a leg, I guess?”

Emma laughed softly, looking downward. “Will do, ‘Lyssa.”

Alyssa’s eyes followed Emma as she worked her way around to the side of the makeshift stage, not dropping her gaze even as Alice approached with her drink.

She tried in vain to stop thinking about how nice that nickname sounded coming from Emma’s lips.

 

* * *

 

Once her face was turned away from Alyssa, Emma cringed. ‘Lyssa? _Really_?

She shook her head and grabbed her guitar from the stand next to the stage, doing a quick check to make sure it was in tune before shooting a thumbs up to the tech guy to indicate that she was ready. Taking a deep breath, she stepped up onto the stage and sat down on the stool.

“Hey, all! Welcome to Trees’ open mic night.” Emma locked eyes with Alyssa, who grinned at her and gave her a thumbs up. God, she was adorable. “The name’s Emma Nolan, and I’m opening the night for y’all. I’m starting with a pretty popular one, so, uh, hope you like it!”

Emma took one last deep breath before she began to play.

_Yeah, I’ll tell you something_

_I think you’ll understand_

_When I say that something_

_I want to hold your hand_

_I want to hold your hand_

_I want to hold your hand_

Her eyes found Alyssa in the audience once again and she felt her heart begin to pound at the soft look in Alyssa’s eyes and the almost imperceptible smile playing at her lips.

She fumbled the next chord slightly. Shit. Focus, Emma. Closing her eyes, she continued.

_Oh, please, say to me_

_You’ll let me be your man_

_And please say to me_

_You’ll let me hold your hand_

_Now let me hold your hand_

_I want to hold your hand_

Emma opened her eyes again to see that the look on Alyssa’s face had shifted slightly, a small crease forming in her brow. Though the small smile was still present, the look in her eyes was farther away.

Shit. _Shit_. Was the song too on the nose?

_And when I touch you I feel happy inside_

_It’s such a feeling that my love_

_I can’t hide_

_I can’t hide_

_I can’t hide_

It was hard to look at Alyssa, and yet Emma couldn’t seem to drag her eyes away. No matter how hard she tried, her gaze always fell back onto dark brown curls and equally dark eyes that reflected the fairy lights beautifully.

_Yeah, you_

_You got that something_

_I think you’ll understand_

_When I feel that something_

_I want to hold your hand_

_I want to hold your hand_

She managed to find Alice behind the bar, arms crossed, shaking her head in disbelief. Emma glared at her. Alice simply blew her a kiss.

She looked back at Alyssa and poured the last of her heart out into the final lines.

_I want to hold your hand_

_I want to hold your hand_

Applause rang out throughout the coffee shop, Alyssa throwing in a few cheers. a massive grin splitting her face as Emma awkwardly bowed and made her way off the stage to their table.

 

* * *

 

Alyssa was absolutely enchanted.

Emma seemed completely in her element on that stage. Her fingers flew elegantly over the strings, and her voice rang high and clear over the ambient chatter of the cafe.

Alyssa couldn’t help the smile that found its way onto her face as she watched Emma play. She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, or if Emma’s eyes actually did keep finding hers, but she found herself incapable of tearing her eyes away from the woman, her heart beating a little faster each time they made eye contact.

Emma closed her eyes as she hit another higher note, and Alyssa’s breath was taken away by the emotion Emma was pouring into the song. She wondered, for a moment, where it all came from. Alice had said that Emma had her eyes on someone. Were they here? Or was Emma just drawing on it for the performance? Her brow furrowed involuntarily at the thought of Emma with someone else.

Alyssa quickly blinked in an attempt to snap herself out of that train of thought, refocusing her mind on Emma’s voice as the song drew to a close.

Alyssa applauded, cheering loudly a few times for good measure. She pulled Emma into a hug the moment she was close enough to.

“You were so great, Emma! Why didn’t you tell me you could sing? I mean. You invited us to this, so I guess you kinda did, but you didn’t tell me you could sing like that!”

An adorable blush coloured Emma’s cheeks. “Thanks, ‘Lyssa. I’m glad you liked it.”

“I loved it.” Alyssa said seriously. “You’re incredible.”

They stared at each other for a moment before the next performer started to introduce themself. Emma cleared her throat and put away her guitar. She took a seat across from Alyssa and smiled before turning her chair towards the stage as the man on stage started playing.

Alyssa tried to focus on the performer currently singing on the small makeshift stage. Promise. Like a magnet, though, her eyes seem to be drawn to the woman next to her.

Emma was watching the performance intently, a small smile playing on her lips as she nodded her head lightly to the rhythm. The world seemed to melt away around her as Alyssa took in Emma; she let herself wonder, for a moment, what it would be like to lose herself in those bright hazel eyes, what it would be like to lace those deft, calloused fingers through her own, what would happen if she were just to _lean into those oh-so-soft looking lips_ -

The sound of applause tore Alyssa from her thoughts, and she hurried to regain her composure, wiping her suddenly sweaty palms onto the fabric of her skirt and trying to calm the rapid beating of her heart.

 

* * *

 

Alyssa and Emma walked arm-in-arm towards Emma’s car, which was parked further away from the cafe than Alyssa’s, huddled closely together for warmth.

“I really felt bad for that one guy, though! He completely blanked on the lyrics!” Alyssa said, laughing.

“Oh, so did I. I’ve been there. It absolutely sucks.”

They reached Emma’s car and Emma climbed in, rolling down her window.

“Goodnight, Alyssa. I’m glad you could make it.”

“I’m glad I could make it too. You have to tell me whenever you do one of these. I’ll be at them all, you won’t be able to keep me away.”

Emma looked down bashfully and laughed, and Alyssa’s heart fluttered.

“Listen, Emma, I, um. I need to talk to you about something.”

Emma looked concerned. “Everything alright?”

Alyssa took a deep breath. “It’s just… I don’t know. When I’m with-”

Emma’s phone went off. She checked it and swore under her breath. “Crap. Sorry, Alyssa, It’s my grandma, so I really gotta take this. Um, text me later? If you still want to talk, that is.”

It took a moment for Alyssa to regain her composure. “Oh, um, okay. Yeah. Goodnight, Emma.”

Emma smiled and rolled her window up. The last thing Alyssa saw before she turned around was Emma waving at her as she answered her phone.

Alyssa made her way back to her car, left alone with her thoughts. What was she thinking? She nearly went and told Emma… what, exactly? That every time Alyssa is around her, her heart beats a little faster and it’s just that little bit harder to breathe? That not half an hour ago she was imagining kissing her, despite the fact that she was married to someone else? That she maybe, just maybe, might have-

No. No one could know, _especially_ not Emma.

Alyssa turned the key and drove home, deciding to ignore her traitorous heart for now. For now, well, she would just crawl into bed with her husband, and hope that by the time she woke up, everything would be completely fine.


End file.
